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July 21, 2014

The Small Business Owner Didn't Like Surprises

I had a 10 year career as a financial manager at entrepreneurial firms before I started CPA for Small Business. Early in my financial management career, I worked for an owner who was having a hard time dealing with the stress and pressure of maintaining the firm he had built. In a meeting he expressed in frustration that he didn't like surprises and that as the CFO I should work hard to make sure there weren't any.

Ten to fifteen years later, I'm sorry to say that I still haven't mastered the art of mitigating surprises in small, entrepreneurial businesses.

Change is normal in life and so are surprises. The sooner you accept this as a business owner, the better you will be at adapting and overcoming the surprises that life will throw at your business.